Seeing the despondency in his eyes made my own prickle. I groaned, covering my face. "I'm so sorry if I ever made you regret taking me in."

  He took hold of my hands and lowered them, staring at me intently. "Never. Truthfully, I was afraid you regretted having me as your guardian."

  “Well, you're not my guardian. You're my father.”

  He shook his head over my protest. "Any blame belongs to me. I had made a promise to take care of you. But each time I left you behind, I risked breaking it and leaving my daughter with more scars like the ones she appeared with.” His voice turned gruff. “It hurt, but I understood. You were only scared and it took me too long to change anything."

  Releasing my hands, he rubbed the missing joint of his finger. A long, scarred line ran across the rest of them; it had been pure luck he hadn't lost them all. Every morning and evening, I'd silently insisted on wrapping a fresh bandage around it, no matter how many times he'd begged me to talk to him. And the scar on his face, I'd refused to look at him for three days. But still, he'd brush my hair carefully before walking me over to Saturnia's home.

  I coughed. “Maybe, but it was still really stupid.”

  "Maximilia,” he sighed. “Life is never meant to be only one way. You already know the things that put me on that path, but you should also know that because of you, I could be more than just a gladiator. I could choose a purpose. Choose to help others survive. And although I had no idea how to be one, I could choose to be your father."

  We sat in silence as the words melded with the air. The night had softened, soothed with the sound of crickets.

  "And I'm really glad you did." I cleared my throat, attempting to lighten the mood. "I can't believe you called me little one in front of Quintus."

  He frowned. "Did that embarrass you?"

  "Never." And I meant it.

  "Ah, I know you are a woman now. But sometimes I still see you as..." Felix trailed off.

  I rolled my eyes, pouring him some wine. "I know. All parents like to say that, don't they?"

  While we ate, I asked how the twins were doing. It had been such a tough fight and it was easy to see that it had taken a lot out of them. Blood and otherwise. And they had seemed rattled more than usual after.

  "The stab was deep but clean compared to Corvus's wounds. We had to dig out several shards of obsidian from him, but Caelum stitched them up well."

  I sucked air through my teeth, wincing in sympathy. "What about the Solis warriors?

  "The bodies were returned, but beyond that, I have no idea."

  I bit my lip. "Those two...what did you think of them?"

  He took a sip of wine. "They were angry, as I probably would be. They would have done very well in the arena. And they certainly knew how to make an entrance."

  "I can't imagine what it must have been like for the Legion to fight them in their own territory." A shiver ran over my skin and I shook myself. "I heard it's dense and wild with trees and vines. Not exactly the best for battle formations. I wonder how they'll react now."

  "The gate is heavily fortified. And their tactics are less effective out here. Especially without horses."

  "What? They don't have horses?" I exclaimed in surprise. How did anyone not have horses? I shook my head before I got distracted. "Anyways. So, I have a request.”

  Felix looked up with interest.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  “What do you think about holding a feast for the gladiators using the courtyard?"

  Dubious, he lowered his brow. "Are you sure? Also, to my knowledge, a ludus has never done something like that before."

  I stretched out on the couch with a yawn. "Another reason to do it, then. Besides, you always want to spoil me, but your family is bigger than you realize, whether you want to admit it or not."

  He mulled over the word, stroking his bearded chin.

  "Also, Prax and Corvus deserve it. They can celebrate freely, away from the public eye while healing from their injuries. I think it'll be really good for everyone's morale.”

  "If that's what you want," Felix grumbled. But I could hear the pleased smile in his voice.

  "It is. It'll be fun." I closed my eyes. "Probably will need to set up some temporary benches and tables. Might spill out into the training grounds—there's a lot of you."

  I drifted off as he sat there drinking his wine, deep in thought. Distantly, I felt the red mantle that had circled around his chest settle on me.

  ***

  I brushed the dirt from my hands, looking around the courtyard. The plants I had ordered before the games had been waiting for me when I returned, and I had spent the better part of the morning arranging them while Saturnia helped with the smoothies.

  It had been a pain dragging some of the stone planters around, but I was happy with the result. Small cypress trees filled out the corners while flowering plants lined the walls and created some semi-private nooks among the stone seating areas. Saturnia had also thought to place small basins of water on the tables with cut blooms. The roses, lilies, and daisies combined to fill the air with a faint floral.

  I had just finished sweeping the dirt out when a group of gladiators walked in.

  "Hey! We heard there's going to be a feast here tonight." Excitement bounced across their faces.

  I leaned the broom against the wall. "Don't worry, it'll be more than just smoothies. I guess Flavia knows the right people—or at least the right people to ask."

  "We're always trying to guess who she is," one of them said, shaking her head. "She has to be some local politician's daughter. Or maybe even a kid of one of the assembly members at Capitoline."

  "Then we know it's definitely not the plebeian one," said another with a laugh.

  His friend elbowed him. "Hey, don't knock them. They're still the strongest check on the Senate." He turned to me. "Either way, it's the longest running bet in the ludus. We're going to find out one day, I swear. Want in?"

  "What if I already know?" I asked. Their jaws dropped and they crowded in close. Snickering, I leaned back and raised my hands. "I'm joking. I have no idea."

  One of them eyed me suspiciously before relaxing. "We'll see. But we really came here to thank you. For the feast."

  "Rich people food," the first one said longingly, licking her lips.

  "Yeah. Your father's got money. Keep telling him to spend it on us."

  His friend elbowed him again, hard this time. "Brutus!"

  "Ow—what?"

  The gladiatrix pushed them aside. "We also came here for smoothies, specifically the ones the twins get."

  "By Mars, they were amazing," groaned Brutus. "I never even thought of doing half the stuff they did. I would've died immediately against those Solis warriors."

  "They looked so cool, though. That cat was huge."

  "How come I never thought of using my helmet that way?"

  "Or when he flipped the blades around—she dodged a dart—don't forget how—" Their words began to mash together as they began reenacting certain scenes.

  "Alright! Hey, settle down," I exclaimed over the clamor before explaining which ones they got before. Not that there was much of a history to go off of. Today was only the fifth day Invictus Shakes was open.

  I returned to the counter and Saturnia took off. I looked over the menu as I made their drinks. Let's see. Felix already had the first four. The Fides had dates, the Epona was mostly apple and spinach, and the Discordia was beets and plums. He had tried his best to school his face with the last one, but eventually gave up. Few people liked beets but those who did were crazy about them.

  Next on the list was the Felicitas, a smoothie of strawberries, mint, and basil.

  "And give this to Felix," I said when I handed them their drinks.

  After that, a flood of customers came in without slowing the entire day. Ignatius and his attitude also stopped by again for just protein powder mixed in water. But I was so busy I didn't even have time to be annoyed. Whatever issue he had with me was not my problem anymore.

  Most had come to the ludus to see if they could catch a glimpse of the twins before eventually giving up and coming here. Requests for their favorite smoothie became the question of the day. So much so that I ended up marking them on the slate. Yesterday had been nicknamed the Sol Ludus—the Sun Game—and it was all anyone wanted to talk about.

  And eventually I was bound to overhear the darker side of people's interests when it came to gladiators.